ས་བ་བན་པ་མདོ།

The Sūtra Teaching the Four Factors

Caturdharmanirdeśasūtra
 འཕགས་པ་ས་བ་བན་པ་ས་་བ་ག་པ་ན་པོ ་མདོ།

’phags pa chos bzhi bstan pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo

The Noble Mahāyāna Sūtra “Teaching the Four Factors”

Āryacaturdharmanirdeśanāmamahāyānasūtra
 Toh 249
Degé Kangyur, vol.66 (mdo sde, za), folios 59.a–59.b.

Translated by Adam Pearcey

under the patronage and supervision of 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha

First published 2019

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co. CONTENTS

ti. Title
co. Contents
s. Summary
ac. Acknowledgements
i. Introduction
tr. The Translation
c. Colophon
n. Notes
b. Bibliography
g. Glossary
s. SUMMARY

s.1 While Buddha Śākyamuni is residing in the Sudharmā assembly hall in the
Heaven of the Thirty-Three, he explains to the great bodhisattva Maitreya four
factors that make it possible to overcome the effects of any negative deeds one
has committed. These four are: the action of repentance, which involves feeling
remorse; antidotal action, which is to practice virtue as a remedy to non-virtue;
the power of restraint, which involves vowing not to repeat a negative act; and
the power of support, which means taking refuge in the Buddha, Dharma, and
Saṅgha, and never forsaking the mind of awakening. The Buddha concludes by
recommending that bodhisattvas regularly recite this sūtra and reflect on its
meaning as an antidote to any further wrongdoing.

ac. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

ac.1 Translated by Adam Pearcey, with the assistance of Alak Zenkar Rinpoche. An
earlier draft of this translation was published on Lotsawa House
(https://www.lotsawahouse.org/) in 2013. The present updated version was
then completed in 2017 under the patronage and supervision of 84000:
Translating the Words of the Buddha.
i. INTRODUCTION

i.1 As its name suggests, the Caturdharmanirdeśasūtra (Sūtra Teaching the Four Factors)
is an explanation of four dharmas, here meaning factors or qualities.1 These
factors relate to the practice of confession (even though no equivalent of that
word occurs in the sūtra itself) and the purification of misdeeds or negative,
harmful actions (pāpa). The four are: (1) the action (or correct approach) of
repentance or self-reproach (vidūṣaṇāsamudācāra; rnam par sun ’byin pa kun tu
spyod pa), which involves feeling remorse for past negative actions; (2) antidotal
or remedial action (pratipaṣasamudācāra; gnyen po kun tu spyod pa), which means
cultivating virtuous actions as an antidote to misdeeds; (3) the power of restraint
(pratyāpattibala; sor chud par byed pa’i stobs), which means vowing not to repeat a
negative action; and (4) the power of support (āśrayabala; rten gyi stobs), which
means taking refuge in the Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha, and never forsaking
the mind of awakening. Through employing these four factors, the sūtra says,
any negative act, no matter how grave, can be “overcome” in the sense that its
karmic consequences can be transformed. This became a crucial idea for
Mahāyāna ethics, both in theory and in practice.
i.2 The importance of the Caturdharmanirdeśasūtra is evident from the numerous
references to it that appear in Indian Mahāyāna literature. The Bodhyāpattideśanā-
vṛtti (Commentary on the Confession of Bodhisattva Downfalls), for example, which is
attributed to Nāgārjuna, cites the sūtra and elaborates on the four powers (stobs
bzhi), as the four factors came to be known, despite the fact that only the final
two are labeled “power” (stobs; bala) in the sūtra itself. Bhāviveka’s Tarkajvālā,
too, refers to the sūtra in support of the view that even the very gravest of
negative actions can be purified. And chapter eight of Śāntideva’s Śikṣāsamuccaya
(Compendium of Training), on the purification of misdeeds (pāpaśodhana; sdig pa
sbyong ba), not only quotes from the Caturdharmanirdeśasūtra, but even takes the
four factors as its central theme.
i.3 Tibetan authors, too, make it clear that the four powers are the key elements of
confessional practice (bshags pa). In his famous Ornament of Precious Liberation
(dwags po thar rgyan), Gampopa Sönam Rinchen (sgam po pa bsod nams rin chen,
 1079–1153) relates the powers to episodes in the lives of the Buddha’s
contemporaries Nanda, Aṅgulimāla, Ajātaśatru, and Udayana, in order to
demonstrate the necessity of each factor. Tsongkhapa Losang Drakpa (tsong kha
pa blo bzang grags pa, 1357–1419) draws on both the Caturdharmanirdeśasūtra itself
and Śāntideva’s discussion in the Śikṣāsamuccaya to explain the powers in some
detail in his magnum opus, the Lamrim Chenmo.2 It is also common to find
reference to the four powers in Tibetan purificatory rites and commentaries on
them.3 There are slight variations in the spelling of the names and the sequence
of these powers, and not all Tibetan works cite the Caturdharmanirdeśasūtra as
their source, but the derivation is clear enough.4
i.4 At least two Sanskrit editions of the Caturdharmanirdeśasūtra exist today.5 One
is a manuscript from a collection held in the Potala library in Lhasa, which
recently became available in a critical edition.6 It exhibits several variations from
the versions in the Tibetan canon, most notably in its inclusion, near the end, of a
four-line verse that it attributes to the Buddha himself:

i.5 “Even minor transgressions prove the downfall of the foolish,

Whereas even serious transgressions do not affect the wise.
A lump of iron, though small, sinks in water;
But even a great mass of iron, when made into a vessel, floats.”7

i.6 Some other minor differences are also noted below. The following translation
was made primarily on the basis of the Degé block print and the Comparative
Edition (dpe bsdur ma), although it follows the Peking Yongle and Kangxi
recensions on one significant point, for reasons that are explained in a note.
Otherwise, since the various Tibetan canonical versions vary among themselves
only slightly in matters of orthography, such instances have not been specified
here.
tr. THE TRANSLATION

The Noble Mahāyāna Sūtra Entitled

Teaching the Four Factors

1.1 [F.59.a] Homage to all the buddhas and bodhisattvas!

1.2 Thus did I hear at one time. The Blessed One was dwelling in the Sudharmā
assembly hall in the Heaven of the Thirty-Three, together with a great gathering
of five hundred monks,8 and very many bodhisattva mahāsattvas, including
Maitreya and Mañjuśrī.
1.3 At that time the Blessed One said to the bodhisattva mahāsattva Maitreya,
[F.59.b] “O Maitreya, bodhisattva mahāsattva, if you possess four factors, the
misdeeds you have committed and accumulated will be overcome.
1.4 “What are these four? The action of repentance, antidotal action, the power of
restraint, and the power of support.
1.5 “The action of repentance is to feel intense remorse for any non-virtuous
action you have committed.
1.6 “Antidotal action is to put great effort into virtuous actions once you have
committed a non-virtuous action.
1.7 “The power of restraint is to make a pledge and thereby refrain from any
similar action.9
1.8 “The power of support is to take refuge in the Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha,
and not to forsake the mind of awakening. By relying on such powerful forces,
you will be immune to misdeeds.
1.9 “O Maitreya, bodhisattva mahāsattva, if you possess these four factors, you
will overcome any misdeeds that you have committed and accumulated. The
bodhisattva mahāsattva should continually read this sūtra, recite it aloud, and
reflect and meditate on it, doing so many times. Through this, the effects of
negative conduct will not come about.”
1.10 Once the Blessed One had said this, the whole assembly, including the
bodhisattva mahāsattva Maitreya, the monks, the bodhisattvas, and the ranks of
the gods, such as Śakra, were overjoyed and full of praise for what the Blessed
One had taught.

1.11 This concludes the noble Mahāyāna sūtra entitled Teaching the Four Factors.

c. COLOPHON

c.1 Translated, edited, and corrected by the Indian preceptor Surendrabodhi and the
principal editor and translator venerable Yeshé Dé.
n. NOTES

1 The Caturdharmanirdeśasūtra is placed in the Degé and other Kangyurs of

predominantly Tshalpa (tshal pa) origin as the second of a group of five short
sūtras (Toh 248–52) all with titles and themes involving four topics. It is followed
by two very similarly titled sūtras: the Caturdharmaka (chos bzhi pa’i mdo, Toh
250), which lists four concerns (for sexual partners, the royal court,
attractiveness, and wealth) to be avoided at all costs; and another with the same
short-form title, Caturdharmaka (Toh 251) but also, as a Mahāyāna sūtra, the more
elaborate long-form title that Toh 250 lacks, Āryacaturdharmakanāmamahāyāna-
sūtra, which describes four dharmas (the mind of awakening, spiritual guides,
patience, and living in solitude) that bodhisattvas must never relinquish
throughout their lives.

2 See Tsong-kha-pa 2000 vol. 1, 251–4. Dza Patrul Rinpoche’s (rdza dpal sprul, 1808–
87) famous nineteenth century work kun bzang bla ma’i zhal lung and its
commentary by Khenpo Ngawang Pelzang (ngag dbang dpal bzang, 1879–1941)
discuss the four powers in relation to meditation on the deity Vajrasattva. See
Patrul Rinpoche 1998, 265–7 and Ngawang Pelzang 2004, 226–7.

3 One such text, entitled stobs bzhi’i bshags bsdoms bya tshul, was composed by the
First (or Fourth according to some methods of counting) Paṇchen Lama, Losang
Chökyi Gyaltsen (blo bzang chos kyi rgyal mtshan, 1570–1662). The same author
also wrote another rite incorporating the four powers that focuses on the thirty-
five buddhas of confession. See stobs bzhi tshang ba sangs rgyas so lnga’i bya tshul.

4 Patrul Rinpoche’s kun bzang bla ma’i zhal lung, for example, makes no reference to
the sūtra and discusses the four powers in a different sequence, beginning with
the power of support. See Patrul Rinpoche 1998, 265–7.

5 Besides the Potala manuscript, there is also a Sanskrit edition included in Samten
and Pandey 2003, 45–52.

6 See Tseng 2010.

7 The Potala Sanskrit edition (Tseng 2010, vol. 1, 404) is as follows: kṛtvābudho ’lpam
api pāpam adhaḥ prayāti kṛtvā budho mahad api prajahāty anarthān | majjaty ayo ’lpam
api vāriṇi saṃhataṃ hi pātrīkṛtaṃ mahad api plavate tad eva ||. The verse also
appears, without mention of its source, in Vasubandhu’s auto-commentary to
the Abhidharmakośa. For alternative English translations see Tseng 2010, vol. 1,
405, and Pruden 1988, 962.

8 The Potala Sanskrit edition (Tseng 2010, vol. 1, 397) reads “one thousand two
hundred and fifty monks” (ardhatrayodaśabhir bhikṣuśatair).

9 Here the translation follows the Peking Kangxi and Yongle Kangyurs, as well as
the Potala Sanskrit manuscript and the Śikṣāsamuccaya, in reading mi phyed pa’i
sdom pa as mi byed pa’i sdom pa (akaraṇasaṃvara). This reading not only accords
with the available Sanskrit, it also follows the definitions of the other powers in
providing an instruction rather than a mere description. Moreover, the phrase mi
byed pa’i sdom pa is also retained in the citations of the Caturdharmanirdeśasūtra
that appear in several treatises in the Tengyur, including Bhāviveka’s Tarkajvālā,
Prajñākaramati’s Bodhicaryāvatārapañjikā, and Abhayākaragupta’s
Munimatālaṃkāra. The alternative reading, which is to be found in the other
Kangyurs, could be translated as: “The power of restraint is to make a pledge
and thereby gain an inviolable vow.”
b. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Tibetan Texts

’phags pa chos bzhi bstan pa zhes bya theg pa chen po’i mdo (Caturdharmanirdeśasūtra).
Toh 249, Degé Kangyur vol. 66 (mdo sde, za), folios 59a–59b.

’phags pa chos bzhi bstan pa zhes bya theg pa chen po’i mdo. bka’ ’gyur (dpe bsdur
ma) [Comparative Edition of the Kangyur], krung go’i bod rig pa zhib ’jug ste
gnas kyi bka’ bstan dpe sdur khang (The Tibetan Tripiṭaka Collation Bureau of
the China Tibetology Research Center). 108 volumes. Beijing: krung go’i bod
rig pa dpe skrun khang (China Tibetology Publishing House), 2006–2009, vol.
66, pp. 163–5.

Bhāviveka. dbu ma’i snying po’i ’grel pa rtog ge ’bar ba (Madhyamakahṛdayatarka-

jvālā). Toh 3856. Degé Tengyur vol. 98 (dbu ma, dza), folios 40b–329b.

Gampopa Sönam Rinchen (sgam po pa bsod nams rin chen). dam chos yid bzhin gyi
nor bu thar pa rin po che’i rgyan. In bstan rim gces btus (Institute of Tibetan
Classics vol. 10). Delhi: bod kyi gtsug lag zhib ’jug khang, 2009, pp. 45–243.

Losang Chökyi Gyaltsen (blo bzang chos kyi rgyal mtshan). stobs bzhi’i bshags bsdoms
bya tshul. In blo bzang chos kyi rgyi mtshan dpal bzang po’i gsung ’bum, 5 volumes,
bkra shis lhun po’i par khang. 199? vol. 4, pp. 527–32. (Cf. vol. 5, pp. 293–6).

———. stobs bzhi tshang ba sangs rgyas so lnga’i bya tshul. In blo bzang chos kyi rgyal
mtshan dpal bzang po’i gsung ’bum, 5 volumes, bkra shis lhun po’i par khang.
199? vol. 5, 286–9.

Nāgārjuna. byang chub kyi ltung ba bshags pa’i ’grel pa (Bodhyāpattideśanāvṛtti). Toh
4005. Degé Tengyur vol. 116 (mdo ’grel, ji), folios 178a–187b.

Śāntideva. bslab pa kun las btus pa (Śikṣāsamuccaya). Toh 3940. Degé Tengyur vol.
111 (dbu ma, khi), folios 3a–194b.
Tsongkhapa Losang Drakpa (tsong kha pa blo bzang grags pa). skyes bu gsum gyi
nyams su blang ba’i rim pa thams cad tshang bar ston pa’i byang chub lam gyi rim pa
in rje tsong kha pa’i gsung ’bum. 18 volumes. Dharamsala: Sherig Parkhang,
1997, vol. 13, folios 1–521.

Western Language Sources and Translations

Bendall, Cecil and W.H.D. Rouse. ŚikshāSamuccaya: A Compendium of Buddhist

Doctrine Compiled by Śāntideva. London: John Murray, 1922.

Feer, Henri Léon. “Le Sūtra des Quatre Préceptes.” Journal Asiatique, sér. 6, tome
8 (1866): 269–357.

Gampopa. The Jewel Ornament of Liberation: The Wish-fulfilling Gem of the Noble
Teachings. Translated by Khenpo Konchog Gyaltsen Rinpoche. Ithaca: Snow
Lion Publications, 1998.

Goodman, Charles. The Training Anthology of Śāntideva: A Translation of the Śikṣā-

samuccaya. New York: Oxford University Press, 2016.

Ngawang Pelzang. A Guide to The Words of My Perfect Teacher. Translated by

Padmakara Translation Group. Boston: Shambhala Publications, 2004.

Patrul Rinpoche. The Words of My Perfect Teacher. Translated by Padmakara

Translation Group. Boston: Shambhala Publications, 1998.

Pruden, Leo M. Abhidharmakośabhāṣyam by Louis de la Vallée Poussin.English

Translation. 4 vols. Berkeley, California: Asian Humanities Press, 1988.

Samten, Ngawang and Janarden Pandey (ed.). “ĀryaCaturdharmanirdeśa-

sūtram.” Dhīḥ: Journal of Rare Buddhist Texts Research Unit, 35 (2003): 45–52.

Tseng, Vinita. A unique collection of twenty Sūtras in a Sanskrit manuscript from the
Potala. Volume I.1. Austrian Academy of Sciences Press, 2010.

Tsong-kha-pa. The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment. vol. 1.
Translated by the Lamrim Chenmo Translation Committee. Ithaca: Snow Lion
Publications, 2000.

Wangchuk, Dorji. The Resolve to Become a Buddha: A Study of the Bodhicitta Concept
in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism. Tokyo: The International Institute for Buddhist
Studies, 2007.
g. GLOSSARY

g.1 Action of repentance

rnam par sun ’byin pa kun tu spyod pa

མ་པར་ན་འན་པ་ན་་ོད་པ།

vidūṣaṇāsamudācāra
Feeling remorse for past negative actions.

g.2 Antidotal action

gnyen po kun tu spyod pa

གན་པོ་ན་་ོད་པ།
pratipakṣasamudācāra
Carrying out virtuous actions as an antidote to past negative deeds.

g.3 Heaven of the Thirty-Three

sum cu rtsa gsum

མ་་་གམ།

Trāyastriṃśa
The second heaven of the desire realm located above Mount Meru.

g.4 Maitreya
byams pa

མས་པ།
Maitreya
Bodhisattva of loving kindness; the next buddha to follow Śakyāmuni.

g.5 Mañjuśrī
’jam dpal

འཇམ་དཔལ།

Mañjuśrī
Bodhisattva of wisdom.

g.6 Power of restraint

sor chud par byed pa’i stobs

སོར་ད་པར་ད་པ་ོབས།
pratyāpattibala
Pledging not to repeat past negative actions.
g.7 Power of support
rten gyi stobs

ན་་ོབས།
āśrayabala
Calling upon the Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha and vowing not to forsake the mind of awakening as a
support in avoiding negative actions.

g.8 Śakra
brgya byin

བ་ན།
Śakra
An alternative name for Indra, lord of the gods, who, according to Buddhist cosmology, resides in the
Heaven of the Thirty-Three.

g.9 Sudharmā
chos bzang

ས་བཟང་།
Sudharmā
An assembly hall located in the southwest of the Heaven of the Thirty-Three.

g.10 Surendrabodhi
su ren dra bo dhi

་ན་་བོ་།

Surendrabodhi
An Indian paṇḍiṭa resident in Tibet during the late eighth and early ninth centuries.

g.11 Yeshé Dé
ye shes sde

་ས་།
—
A prolific Tibetan translator active during the late eighth and early ninth centuries.